The present invention relates to testing electronic communication systems, and in particular, to testing radio frequency (RF) communication systems.
Many of today's electronic devices use wireless technologies for both connectivity and communications purposes. Because wireless devices transmit and receive electromagnetic energy, and because two or more wireless devices have the potential of interfering with the operations of one another by virtue of their signal frequencies and power spectral densities, these devices and their wireless technologies must adhere to various wireless technology standard specifications.
When designing such devices, engineers take extraordinary care to ensure that such devices will meet or exceed each of their included wireless technology prescribed standard-based specifications. Furthermore, when these devices are later being manufactured in quantity, they are tested to ensure that manufacturing defects will not cause improper operation, including their adherence to the included wireless technology standard-based specifications.
For testing these devices following their manufacture and assembly, current wireless device test systems employ a subsystem for analyzing signals received from each device. Such subsystems typically include at least a vector signal analyzer (VSA) for analyzing signals produced by the device, and a vector signal generator (VSG) for generating signals to be received by the device. The analyses performed by the VSA and the signals generated by the VSG are generally programmable so as to allow each to be used for testing a variety of devices for adherence to a variety of wireless technology standards with differing frequency ranges, bandwidths and signal modulation characteristics.
As part of the manufacturing of wireless communication devices, one significant component of product cost is manufacturing test cost. Typically, there is a direct correlation between the cost of test and the time required to perform such test. Thus, innovations that can shorten test time without compromising test accuracy or increasing capital equipment costs (e.g., increasing costs due to increasing sophistication of test equipment, or testers) are important and can provide significant cost savings, particularly in view of the large numbers of such devices being manufactured and tested.
One way of ensuring that test time is minimized is to confirm connectivity between the test system (or “tester) and the device under test (DUT). In other words, confirming the integrity of the cabled signal connections between the tester and DUT prior to initiation of testing will avoid test time otherwise wasted collecting meaningless signal data when connection to the DUT is nonexistent or faulty. This will save time involved in running a test sequence as well as processing of false test results.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to have a test system and method for confirming RF signal connectivity integrity between signal ports of a test system and DUT.